Play Healthy, Play Hard

Continued from our Retreat & Renew Daily Tip.

I really mean this as no offense to the numerous golf resorts across the country, but most of the time these resorts should just stick to what they know beautiful greens. It is a rare occasion where a golf resort a world class one at that also boasts a spa of similar caliber. This is exactly why I was intrigued to visit the legendary Boulders Resort in Carefree, Arizona. The Boulders manages to attract top golfers as well as avid spa-goers. Could they really be doing both well?

Play Healthy Last fall, my family and my in-laws packed up and headed south to get some much-needed sun, golf and spa. While my husband, Steven and his father were set to golf, I was planning on nurturing myself back to balance at the Golden Door spa.

Upon arrival, we were all surprised at the size of the property. This is a not a walk-everywhere type of property. There are mazes of roads, connecting the 160 guest casitas and 61 private villas, as well as 7 restaurants, 2 18-hole golf courses, and 8 tennis courts. This wasn’t a spa resort it was a village.

Unlike some other resorts in the area that are decidedly modern, the Boulders relies heavily on its Southwestern and Native American heritage and rooms and suites feature a strong influence of both cultures. Our room with its terracotta tile floors, exposed beams, and Native American pottery blended seamlessly with the desert just beyond our sliding glass doors. Vegetation is natural (aside from the ahem, extremely green golf course- which is of course, necessary), with stones, rocks, cactuses and a variety of succulents dotting the landscape.

The following morning, my husband and father-in-law headed to the golf course where they were set to spend their day navigating the beautiful rocks and equally stunning greens, whereas I packed myself into a golf cart and headed to the Golden Door spa.

I’m quite familiar with the Golden Door, with its original outpost in Escondido, California, recognized as one of the leading health resorts in the world. The Arizona location utilizes many of the Golden Door-Escondido principles, including complete mind-body wellness while also incorporating healing traditions of the Southwest. The 33,000-square-foot spa boasts 24 treatment rooms, and lavish men’s and women’s Niwas (locker rooms) each with steam, sauna, and Japanese O’furo baths. Treatments vary from the traditional Swedish massage to the Ayurvedic and everything in between. In addition, emotional and “life” issues are equally stressed with spa consultations available in life coaching, emotional balancing, numerology, and chakra therapy.

I chose to experience the Needle & the Stone treatment, an Eastern meets Western therapy that had me incredibly intrigued and also, to be honest, quite skeptical. I have a strong affinity for hot stone massage, and while I also believe in the benefits of acupuncture, can’t really say that I thought the two of them blended all that well. Led by certified acupuncturist, Keith Simmons, the treatment began with hot stones carefully placed below my spine that helped open my energy channels and soothe my tired back muscles. Afterward, Simmons alternated between hot rock massage and acupuncture often placing needles and then moving to another part of my body to ease tension. At one point, when the needles were sticking from nearly half a dozen places on my face, I felt a lot of pain. Not pain from the needles themselves, but almost like a gushing pain in the back of my neck and head and then suddenly it washed away. The relief was amazing. I had no idea I held so much tension in my neck and jaw until the needles brought it to my attention. I left the treatment wishing that more therapists actually combined the two therapies making acupuncture a bit more like a spa therapy versus just a healing modality. Because really, don’t we all want both?

After my spa treatment, I wandered outside to check out the spa pool (one of four pools on the Boulders’ property) as well as the labyrinth and tipi. Normally, I look at the labyrinth and think, “yeah, I could do that if someone guided me through it.” But, I was so relaxed and clear that I decided to take my first step, and then a second. The next thing I knew, I had spent nearly 30 minutes walking the labyrinth as thoughts floated through my mind and disappeared. Leaving remarkably refreshed, I wandered back to the Women’s Niwa and prepared for our dinner at the spa caf©, a special dinner being hosted by visiting Golden Door-Escondido Executive Chef, Dean Rucker. (Note: Dean Rucker is no longer at the Escondido location.)

After my husband’s day at the golf course (and I’m sure a few beers and burgers), he headed to the spa to have a nutritional consultation with Karen Janusz. One of the key aspects of the Golden Door philosophy is balanced nutrition. From the spa caf© to the diet espoused by the nutritionists at each and every Golden Door spa, the idea is a diet that is sustainable and life-long. Deprivation isn’t the answer, but instead the focus should be on learning how to truly infuse flavors into your diet and keep track of overeating. My husband’s consultation went well, but overall he felt a little bit like it would be easy to eat that way if we lived in this spa and golf village where our meals arrived fresh from the garden and were carefully prepared as to maximize health. But we left with the new Golden Door cookbook, The Golden Door Cooks at Home, in hand, and plans for a garden to boot. Who knows? Perhaps we could eat and live this way?

That evening, we indulged ourselves and joined other spa-goers at the Golden Door Spa Dinner hosted by Chef Rucker. The spa hosts numerous events throughout the year, and while hotel guests are always invited, there was definitely a large group of Boulders residents, who in their retirement were not only playing hard, but also playing healthy. As guests mingled and snacked on healthy appetizers, my husband and I pondered this new realm of “resort” living. No longer does a vacation or a resort experience mean endless buffets, and growing waistlines. You can go on vacation and come back feeling lighter, healthier and inspired.

While there are numerous resorts and destination spas that espouse a healthy lifestyle, I would consider most of them health spas versus golf spas. I think part of what makes The Boulders so unique is its draw for those that want both.

And, yes, some resorts can blend the links with the get-out-the-kinks, nearly seamlessly.